Tennessee PE CE (PDH) Requirements (2026): 24 Hours Every 2 Years
Requirements Overview
Tennessee requires 24 hours of continuing education per biennial renewal for professional engineers, with 13 hours dedicated to health, safety, and welfare (HSW) issues and technical competencies — a PE-specific split that differs from the "all hours HSW" rule applied to architects. First-time renewers face a reduced 12-hour requirement (7 HSW) during their first two years of licensure. Full detail sits in Chapter 0120-05 of the Board's rules.
The Board does not pre-approve courses, and online, correspondence, and televised formats all qualify. Tennessee runs an honor-system program: CE records aren't submitted at renewal unless the registrant is selected for the roughly 5% annual audit, though 4 years of documentation must be kept on hand. No carry-over of excess hours is stated for standard renewals.
Mandatory Topics
| Topic | Hours | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health, safety, and welfare issues and technical competencies | 13 | Every renewal | For standard (non-first) two-year renewals: at least 13 of the 24 required CE hours must address health, safety, and welfare (HSW) issues and technical competencies. For a licensee's first renewal, at least 7 of the 12 required hours must address HSW/technical competencies. |
First Renewal vs. Standard Renewal
How You Can Complete Your CE
Tennessee CE Rules & Limits
Details specific to Tennessee that generic CE guides tend to miss:
- Carry-over — The official continuing education page states no carry-over provision for excess hours between two-year renewal periods. Not asserted as prohibited; simply not addressed on this page. Refer to Chapter 0120-05 of the Board's rules for any carry-over provisions.
- Tennessee's CE program for engineers is described as 'an honor system designed to limit administrative costs.' At renewal, CE records are not submitted unless the registrant is audited.
- Standard engineer requirement: 24 hours of CE per two-year renewal period, of which 13 hours must address health, safety, and welfare (HSW) issues and technical competencies.
- First renewal after initial registration is reduced: 12 hours of CE during the two years immediately following initial registration, of which 7 hours must be HSW/technical competencies.
- These engineer figures (7 of 12 HSW; 13 of 24 HSW) come directly from the official cont-edu.html page and differ from figures that describe Architects (all 12 / all 24 hours in HSW). Some third-party/FAQ summaries incorrectly apply the Architect 'all hours HSW' rule to engineers.
- Registrants must maintain documentation of their CE for a period of 4 years.
- Approximately 5% of registrants are audited; audited registrants receive an audit letter by mail and must complete a summary log and enter PDH documentation online at https://core.tn.gov.
- If part of the PDHs submitted are deemed unacceptable, registrants have 90 days to complete the required hours.
- The Board does not pre-approve courses; registrants determine acceptability using the Board's stated criteria.
- Full legal detail is in Chapter 0120-05 of the Board's rules: https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/rules/0120/0120-05.20210127.pdf
- The board is officially titled the 'State Board of Examiners for Architects, Engineers, and Land Surveyors' (commonly the Tennessee Board of Architectural and Engineering Examiners), administered by the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI).
Provider Requirements
The Board does not pre-approve continuing education courses. Per the page: 'The Board will not approve continuing education courses in advance. It is the registrant's responsibility to determine which courses meet the criteria of the continuing education rules.' Acceptable activities include, but are not limited to: presentations at related technical or professional meetings; seminars, tutorials, correspondence courses, Internet courses, televised courses or videotaped courses; programs sponsored by corporations or organizations; and college or university-sponsored courses. Acceptability criteria: the objective of the activity is to maintain, improve, or expand skills and knowledge, and the presentation is preplanned and made by qualified individuals. Providers are asked to give participants documentation verifying attendance (completion certificate showing sponsoring organization, date, location, duration, instructor/speaker name, and a description of the activity).
Tips for Tennessee PEs
- Track HSW/technical hours separately — standard renewals need 13 of 24; first renewals need only 7 of 12.
- Keep CE certificates (sponsoring organization, date, duration, instructor) for 4 years, since the Board only checks records if you're audited (~5% of registrants).
- Don't assume Tennessee follows the architect "all hours must be HSW" rule — PE HSW minimums are lower (13/24, not 24/24).
- No carry-over is stated for standard renewals, so don't bank surplus hours expecting credit toward the next cycle.
- If flagged for audit, you'll have 90 days to complete any hours later deemed unacceptable.
Sources
Each figure on this page is taken directly from the State Board of Examiners for Architects, Engineers, and Land Surveyors's official rules and continuing-education sources and recorded with the exact source excerpt. Last verified Jul 2026. Read how we compile and verify this data.